Historic preservation is an act of close observation. Beneath layers of paint, wood, and repair, buildings hold evidence of human decisions, technological change, cultural aspiration, and everyday life. The Scientific Art of Historic Preservation reveals how architects, conservators, and material specialists methodically unravel these stories - transforming historic structures from aging buildings into living records of place, memory, and craft.

This exhibition, curated by Heather Crane, AIA, explores the hidden processes behind saving historic places. Through material analysis, architectural investigation, conservation techniques, and stories from oral histories, the exhibition reveals how historic buildings act as physical archives of craftsmanship, trade, design, and community life.

Using Wisteria Cottage, alongside regional and national examples, the exhibition invites visitors to see preservation not simply as restoration, but as discovery: peeling back layers of paint, wood, and history to better understand the people and ideas that shaped the built environment.

Curated by Heather Crane, AIA

This exhibition is made possible through the generous support of Brenda Baker and Steve Baum, Hennebery Eddy, an anonymous donor, Steve DuCharme and Patty Becker, Peter Jensen, Chuck and Gale Lazzaro, and Members of the Museum of History and Culture La Jolla.